


On Gravity and Perpetual Motion

by weepingnaiad



Series: The Stronger Pull 'verse [2]
Category: Star Trek (2009)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-07-24
Updated: 2010-07-24
Packaged: 2017-10-15 10:28:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/159906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weepingnaiad/pseuds/weepingnaiad
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><b>Summary:</b> Winona and Bones chat in a hospital waiting room while waiting for Jim to get patched up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	On Gravity and Perpetual Motion

**Author's Note:**

> **Beta:** the lovely, LJ user, jlh. Thank you so much, hon!
> 
>  **A/N:** Fill #1 for my schmoop bingo card square: _injury -- minor_. This is set a year or so after _“The Stronger Pull”_ but you don’t have to have read that to understand this story.
> 
>  **Disclaimer:** The characters and world belong to the Master himself, Roddenberry. I am only borrowing them so they can come out and frolic a bit, not intending any copyright infringement of any sort. I do own my original characters, but they are available for parties!

> _**On Gravity and Perpetual Motion**  
>  Even if the earth were cored  
> like an apple, pole to pole,  
> and I stepped over the edge  
> to be drawn immediately down  
> accelerating at thirty-two feet  
> per second squared till I passed  
> the molten core and rose,  
> decelerating at an equivalent rate  
> as I intersected the uneasy strata  
> absorbing the geology of creation  
> until I surfaced at the farther pole  
> pausing for one balanced moment  
> before I fell again impelled by  
> gravity's unassuming pull, I would  
> rise and fall perpetually, and yet  
> though every atom of my body knew  
> its intimate grasp, I would understand  
> of the force that moved me, like love,  
> no more than its name.  
> -by David Lunde, Appeared in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, November 1990_

Winona rushed up to the desk at Starfleet Medical’s ER and tried to get a nurse, a clerk, anyone’s attention. “I’m looking for my son, James Kirk?” she asked, leaning over the counter. “Can someone please tell me where I can find him? Please?”

The cluster of staff standing in the office studiously ignored her. Worry made her angry and she straightened, her eyes narrowed as she tugged down her uniform jacket, ready to unleash the seven fires of hell on their indifferent asses.

A soft, “Commander Kirk?” spoken at her elbow had her turning.

A young, blonde intern was standing there holding a PADD and looking uncertain and cautious.

Winona realized she was still scowling, wearing her worry and fury openly. She tried to calm, pushed her feelings aside and nodded. “Yes, I’m Winona Kirk. Can you take me to my family?” She didn’t wait for the intern to offer.

“Yes, ma’am. If you’ll follow me?” The blonde sounded relieved and turned away, walking swiftly through long, shining corridors, past countless doors.

“How’s my son?” she asked.

The intern turned and gave her a gentle smile. “Captain Kirk is fine. Just fine. He’s a bit stubborn and Doctor Watanabe is giving him hell…” She stopped before a door marked ‘family waiting room’ and put her hand on Winona’s shoulder. “But Doctor McCoy, ma’am... he was working when he heard.” She blew out a soft breath. “Nurse Ramirez said that he hasn’t slept in over twenty-four hours. He’s in here… he _really_ needs to rest.”

Winona nodded, completely understanding. Jim was a handful, always had been, but Leonard gave him a run for his money when it came to ignoring his own well being. _’Stubborn boys!’_ “I’ll take it from here…” she glanced at the intern’s badge and smiled knowingly at her, “Doctor Niri. Please let Ms. Ramirez know as well.”

“Thank you, Commander.” Niri stepped forward and the doors opened, her demeanor instantly became more detached and formal as she spoke. “Here we are. Doctor McCoy is waiting.”

Winona stepped through and nodded gratefully to Niri. She recognized the standard family waiting room, vid and comm units, replicator, and horribly uncomfortable furniture. “Leonard.” She rushed to his side. He was sitting on a sofa, looking more than worse for the wear and still in his scrubs, Eli half asleep in his arms.

Leonard looked up and Winona’s heart sank. “Leonard,” she whispered, hoping not to disturb Eli. His eyes snapped open, the emerald green sleepy, but still shining.

“Nana!” Eli cried out and began struggling against Leonard. She smiled and opened her arms and Leonard released his grip. Eli scrambled into her arms, chattering drowsily as he made himself comfortable.

Winona settled into the sofa next to Leonard and arranged Eli’s head and limbs until he was cradled as best his growing body would allow. She turned to Leonard as she began to hum softly, her hands never stopping their soothing and patting as she determinedly lulled Eli to sleep.

It only took a few minutes, testament to how tired he was, and Eli was out, limbs loose and mouth slack, his body a warm weight in Winona’s arms. Jim had been this size when she’d gone back out the first time, when the nightmares and desperation to find some piece of her that she recognized drove her back out.

She clutched Eli a little tighter and turned to Leonard. He was exhausted, near dead on his feet as he sagged, his eyes mere smudges of flat brown instead of bright hazel. “What happened?” she urged.

“I’m sorry I worried you… called you over here.” Leonard started.

Winona watched Leonard struggle, how his eyes latched onto Eli’s sleeping face, how that seemed to soothe him, but he was close to the edge, worried despite himself, with anger underneath it all. She recognized the emotions as they flitted across his eyes, was all too familiar with them herself.

“Nonsense. I wouldn’t be anywhere else. Now tell me how serious it is.” Winona was concerned merely from how wrung out Leonard seemed, but she held her tongue, kept a calm, supportive façade.

“It’s not serious at all. He was teaching Eli how to hoverboard, how to _shred,_ had to be a show off in front of some damned teenagers! Ran into a goddamned tree!” Leonard winced, and looked abashed at Winona.

She grinned. “It’s okay, Leonard. Kirk’s drive the best of us to swearing,” she teased.

Leonard reached up and brushed Eli’s hair from his forehead, his thumb absently stroking the smudge on his cheek. “It’s not as bad as I thought when I first heard, mostly scratches from the tree branches and maybe a broken leg. Just… feels so different being out here…”

She managed to shift Eli and free her arm which she wrapped around Leonard’s shoulder, pulling him close. “Waiting sucks. I can’t stand it, never have gotten used to it. Always preferred having something to do, something to take my mind off how helpless I feel.”

Leonard inhaled sharply.

“Don’t be surprised, Leonard. This… this is what it’s like to be married to a Kirk and most of us never had the joy of being their physicians.”

Leonard looked at her, his pained eyes confused by her smile.

“Sorry, badly timed levity. You look beat all to hell. Want me to wait, bring Jim home while you get some sleep?”

“No thanks, ma’am. I was finishing up a double after classes. Jim always manages to change my plans.”

“The Kirks are trouble magnets, each and every one of them. Things explode around them, and they dive in when everyone else is running away.”

“I just want to strangle him and then wrap him up. I’ve never known anyone who can make me so angry and yet so worried for him at the same time.”

Winona nodded. “That’s definitely Jim Kirk for you.” She lifted her palm and pressed it to Leonard’s cheek. “I paced in lots of waiting rooms, lots of medbays. I swore at George, made him promise to be more careful, promise there wouldn’t be a ‘next’ time, even though we both knew it was a promise he couldn’t keep. He couldn’t help himself. Kirk’s are wired like that. So, I had a choice: leave him, forget the worry and fear or keep sitting in waiting rooms, pacing and swearing.”

“How’d you survive?” Leonard finally asked, so softly she barely heard him.

Winona and Leonard had talked about this before, when they were both sitting at home in his kitchen, unable to sleep for days, waiting for news, wondering if they’d ever see Jim again, but then it had been less about the aftermath of the _Kelvin_ and more about the sound of her voice, about weaving the words around them like a shield and a prayer that would keep Jim safe. She still saw George’s smile and blue, blue eyes each night in dreams, but now the hole in her soul no longer bled. She had grandbabies, a successful career; she was… content.

“Before the _Kelvin_ it was as natural as breathing. George’d apologize and smile and I’d forgive him. Could do nothing else. Afterwards… I had Jim and Sam to look after. I took it hour by hour at first, then day by day, week by week. And then I spent even more time in waiting rooms for Jim.” She shook her head, fond exasperation curling her lips. “Still managed to totally screw it all up for a few long years that I’d do differently, but I’ve never once regretted choosing George Kirk.”

Leonard nodded, but said nothing.

“You know exactly what I mean. How it feels when he smiles at you, how no matter how pissed you are at him, how worried, how afraid, his smile is like the sun and you’re a sunflower, living for the rays of his smile. So you keep coming back, always coming back.”

Leonard looked at her, his eyes wide.

“Don’t look so surprised, Leonard. I see how you look at him, how you eat it up. But you’re not alone. They _all_ have that power, Leonard.” She leaned back and closed her eyes. “Tiberius swept Miriam off her feet, completely against her will. You should have seen her tell me about it. How she was still so mad, but completely smitten. How on the second time they met – they hadn’t even been on a date – he told her that she was leaving the big city, going to settle down on his family farm and have his babies.” She laughed. “Can you imagine? I wish you could have known Tiberius…” Her voice trailed off, lost in thought. Eli shifted, almost smacked himself in the face, and she adjusted him, cradled him more securely before smiling at Leonard again.

“I couldn’t believe he really had the nerve to tell this genius physicist that she was going to give it all up, wait for him on some farm in Iowa, while he explored the stars. But he did, and they were happily married until the day he died.”

“Sounds a lot like Jim. Nervy and so damned cocksure.”

Winona smiled at Leonard, nudged him with her shoulder. “Just like his daddy. George waltzed into my life and took over. He never asked, always assumed…” She gave Leonard a knowing, half-smile. “And Jim, well Jim didn’t come at things quite so straightforward with you…”

Leonard snorted, despite himself.

“Even if he never told you, he told me. Admitted how much he needed you.” Winona shook her head. “It was the first time that he’d confided in me since he was small. I knew then that you were special and I’ve been grateful every day since for you.”

“Ma’am—” Leonard tried to protest.

Winona cut him off. She lifted her head and met his eyes. “Yes, Leonard. _For you._ For the life and family… the _home_ that you’ve made for Jim. The damn fool wouldn’t have had one otherwise… I admit that’s partly my fault, so I owe you… so much.” She gave him a quick kiss. “Now go use your doctorly powers to find out how soon before that cocky boy of ours can go home.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Leonard stood, still off balance but smiling ever so slightly beneath bruised eyes as he slowly walked out of the room.

~~*~~

“Wake up, Papa Bear!”

Jim winced at the shrill cry too close to his ear and he burrowed his head further into the pillows, and tensed his muscles, expecting the coming pounce.

“Haven’t you slept enough? We were at the hospital all night!” Eli pouted as he clambered onto the bed and then onto Jim, his sharp knees and pointy elbows digging into tender places. Jim still found himself sighing happily as little arms wrapped around his neck.

“Baby Bear!” he turned his face and blew a raspberry against Eli’s neck, making his son giggle and roll off him. He followed, ever mindful of his cast, and began to tease and tickle Eli, until the boy was screeching and Jim was panting from laughing so hard. They collapsed into a pile, Eli’s head on Jim’s arm, his breath hitching.

“Jim, what in blue blazes is going on in here?!” Bones growled from the doorway.

Jim smiled and lifted his eyes to his husband. He tried for the innocent look, but their disheveled state and the utterly destroyed bed gave him away. Jim just shrugged. “Resting?”

“Resting my a—”

“Daddy!” Eli scolded, stopping Bones in mid-rant.

“Sorry,” he said, not contrite in the least, before he started again. “Eli, you were supposed to just tell Papa good-bye. Don’t you want to go the movies with Jo?”

“Oh. I forgot!” Eli scrambled off the bed. “Okay, Papa. You rest now like Daddy says.”

Jim had to bite his cheek at how serious Eli could sound, how he managed to look so like Bones, his lips set into a frown and his brows trying to furrow. “Yes, sir!” He said, and saluted.

Eli bolted past Bones. Jim listened as his footsteps receded down the hall before lifting his eyes to his husband who had moved to the side of the bed.

Bones huffed out softly. “You’ll never heal up if you insist on rough housing with Eli.”

Jim shrugged and settled back into the pillows, his eyes growing heavy again. He patted the bed beside him and Bones sat down, linking their fingers.

“I’ll rest, Bones.” He saw his husband’s narrowed eyes and grinned before tugging him down. Bones acquiesced easily and leaned over Jim on his elbows, their lips a hair’s breadth apart. Jim inhaled the air around Bones, his scent comforting.

Bones pressed down, their lips sliding together, warm and slow. “You better, sugar, or I won’t take care of that ‘itch’ you’ve needed scratching.” Their lips met again, almost too tenderly for Jim and he reached up, pulled Bones tight against him, the kiss turning heated before Bones wrenched his lips away.

He stood up and Jim grinned lasciviously at the sight of him: mussed hair and shirt, jeans bulging, and kiss-swollen lips. Jim was thrilled he still affected Bones so much.

“Dammit, Jim!”

Jim laughed, pleased and warm as Bones stalked out of the room. He snuggled back into the pillows, looking forward to Bones’ revenge.

The End


End file.
